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Sunday, June 30, 2013

Mid Argyll Group DNA Project Launched

The research into the Mid Argyll Kinship Group picking up pace with the creation of the Mid Argyll Group DNA project. The project will collect DNA results from those men are in the group, which means every man will have the same paternal ancestry. The project is only open to men that are a paternal DNA match to the group.

The project's goal is to research the Mid Argyll Kinship Group circa 1300 to late
1500s. . The geographic area of the study is the parish of Kilmichael Glassary and the surrounding districts, such as Bute, Arran, Cowal, etc.
The surnames in the group are Duncan, Gay, Gray, Henry, Henrie, McAlpin, McCain, McCane, McKane, McKain, McKean, McKeen, McDonald, and McLea. In Gaelic, Mac Donnchaidh, Mag Aodh, Glass, Mac Eanruig, Mac Ailpín, Mac Eáin, Mac Dónaill, and Mac an Leagha. Another surname of interest in the research are McLachlain (Mac Lachlainn) and the project is open to any male that is high level DNA match to the group. The reason are so many surnames in the group is because surnames were not fixed in Argyll in the
1500s. Gaelic families often followed traditional patronymic customs of
mid Argyll. This generated several surnames within the same family
during that century. This is why we have McAlpin, Henry, Duncan,
McDonald, etc., showing up within the same paternal clan.

The surnames in the DNA match group were in use in Kilmichael Glassary in the 1500s. Most of these surnames appear in records connected to the Mac Lachlainn 'clan' of Dunadd. It is speculated that the Mid Argyll Kinship group is actually the Mac Lachlainn of Dunadd family. This project will have Dr Kyle MacLea as
an administrator, he is a geneticist by profession and teaches at a
university. I will be a co-administrator helping out with the primary
source research and Gaelic language elements.

Blog Archive

The Mid Argyll Kinship Group

This blog will post updates on the paternally related kinship group named the Mid Argyll Kinship Group. The group was discovered via DNA testing several years ago. Families in this group are Duncan (Mac Donnchaidh), Gray (Glass), Henry (Mac Eanruig), McAlpin (Mac Ailpín), McCain (Mac Eáin), McDonald (Mac Dónaill), and MacLea (Mac an Leagha).